


Another year around the sun

by canadino



Category: A3! (Video Game)
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-12
Updated: 2020-10-12
Packaged: 2021-03-08 06:54:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 890
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26967805
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/canadino/pseuds/canadino
Summary: It's Taichi's birthday, and they go camping.
Relationships: Nanao Taichi/Sumeragi Tenma
Comments: 2
Kudos: 20





	Another year around the sun

Birthdays had always been a quiet affair for Tenma. He could count on one hand how many birthdays he’d spent in person with both or either parent; their schedules made it impossible to plan for anything more than a flower delivery or a gift sent a few days in advance. If he was working during the second half of June, Igawa would buy him a cake to eat between his engagements; if he was free, Igawa would take him out to dinner. It wasn’t until he’d joined Mankai that he spent enough time with people his own age to feel comfortable celebrating with and for them. Yuki could call it typical behavior for a young master type, but it was just what it was. 

Shooting for his latest drama had wrapped up at the beginning of October. Midterm season had been long and grueling. He had a commercial scheduled for the end of October and then Summer Troupe’s next play after that, so it was a bit selfish on his part when he’d asked Taichi if he wanted to do anything for his birthday. Day to day, Taichi was disorganized and rarely wrote in his personal planner, but he loved staying current on pop-up events and activities. Tenma figured Taichi had a schedule laid out already for his birthday, which fell on a weekend - between going home to see family and spending time with his own Troupe, Tenma thought they would have an afternoon together running around the city. 

But Taichi asked for his whole weekend, and Tenma found himself asking Igawa to fetch the sleeping bags his father had bought for a trip after Tenma had told his parents about his training camps. (That trip had been a bit of a bust: his father wasn’t much of an outdoorsman and his mother’s hotspot had stopped working halfway through. Still, he knew his father kept the photo they took at the end as his phone background, his mother frowning from watching her husband and son argue about fishing and Tenma grimacing after having to take the whole campsite down by himself after his father cut his hand on a sharp rock.) Taichi borrowed a tent from a classmate, gave him a list of things to pack, and rented a car. On the day of Taichi’s birthday, they set out mid-morning to a moderately popular campsite in a national park two hours away. 

Having both had experiences at training camps, they made short work of setting up the tent and establishing a spot for themselves. Taichi took Tenma on a winding trail through the woods, chattering away loudly to keep the wild animals at bay. They passed a few hikers, the brim of Tenma’s cap long enough to keep his visage fairly hidden to anyone who might recognize him. 

Dinner was two fully packed bentos that Omi had made for them. Tenma noticed Taichi’s was filled with his favorite food; surely, Omi knew Taichi wouldn’t be eating his birthday dinner in the dorm and prepared accordingly. “I thought about catching our food but...I kind of want to know I’ll be eating too, you know?” Still, Taichi foraged for some berries for fun, although they abandoned the effort after how sour they were and with conflicting information online about whether they were fit for human consumption. 

By mid-fall, the days were getting shorter. They kept their fire small, neither quite prepared to manage anything larger than some bright embers and a few licks of flame. When it became a bit too cool to sit outside even with jackets, they put the fire out with water from the river nearby and crawled into the sleeping bags in the tent. The tent was on the small side, so they lay like wrapped bagworms side by side. 

“I didn’t think you’d want to have your birthday be like this,” Tenma said, after they’d fallen quiet for a time. There was a hole on the top of the tent where he could see stars between the thinning leaves. 

“I like it out here! It’s a little scary, yeah, thinking about ghosts and bears, but it kind of makes you feel kind of rugged too, right?” Taichi laughed. “You’re finally free, for a little while right now, too. I thought it would be nice to get away from it all.” Taichi flopped over to face him, shaking the tent a bit in his maneuvering. “I said you’re my rival and stuff but...I also like the you that isn’t a big actor or anything. Right now, as it is, isn’t it like we’re just two regular guys out in the woods?”

It was usually Taichi who was more physical, grabbing at him and holding him and initiating when they found private moments around the dorm. It was because it was Taichi’s birthday that Tenma felt compelled. Snaking his arms out from the confines of the sleeping bag, he took Taichi’s face in his hands and kissed it. He felt Taichi hum in pleasant surprise. “Happy birthday. I’m happy that you thought about me even though it’s your birthday and...I’m h-happy you were born.” Even though it was dark, they were rarely this close so it felt even more intimate even if Taichi was able to see his face. Taichi wiggled closer and kissed him again.

**Author's Note:**

> This was fully supposed to be a Taichi Birthday Fic and just turned into a Tenma simp fic. But I think it's romantic how Taichi compartmentalizes his idolatry/rivalry with Tenma (def think Tenma contributed to some of his complexes as a preteen) but also is able to appreciate and value Tenma as an individual who is his friend??? This ship kills the man. 
> 
> I want to write a TaiYuki companion fic to this because I think Taichi deserves every birthday wish he wants...


End file.
